Reality Wine TV

Filed in archive Wine Making on October 25, 2006

Reality TV shows are so popular these days. I'm not normally a big fan of them, though it kind of depends. I love Project Runway, even with the silly drama at times. Another type of reality show I've liked in the past are those on public broadcasting stations where they have people from the 21st century try to live in another "simulated" of course time period. Now it seems PBS has come up with another reality show that is going to interest me because this one is about wine making. Cool!

From Maconite a finalist for reality show:

Allan Bass is about to join the ranks of reality show contestants, and he won't have to go through Simon Cowell or Donald Trump to win his prize.

Bass, who owns Bert's on Cherry Street, is headed to California today as one of 12 finalists to appear on a new reality series called "The Wine Makers." It's set to debut on PBS during fall 2007.

Bass made the final cut out of more than 600 contestants. All of them are competing for the chance to produce their own wine label. [...]
Bass has no idea what's in store for him once he makes it to Paso Robles, Calif., in the heart of wine-making country. Producers are mum on details about what contestants can expect.

"They won't tell us very much at all," he said.

None of the contestants has previous wine-making experience, and unlike Bass, most don't have experience in the food service industry.

"We wanted people who had a real enthusiasm for wine, people who came from all walks of life," Whalen said.

The winner of the competition will be able to produce 5,000 bottles of their own wine label, which will be picked up and sold through a "major retailer." The winner will be announced in Las Vegas, which Whalen describes as the "No. 1 premium wine-consuming city in the world."

Bass said he likes a variety of wines from around the world, particularly Spain. Right now, pinot noirs are among his favorite. Besides owning Bert's, Bass also works for Bibb Distributing, buying wines for the company for distribution.